1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a system and method for controlling operations of a measuring machine.
2. Description of Related Art
Product quality is an important factor in improving the competitiveness of an enterprise. To assure and improve product's quality, manufacturers usually measure the product's prototype before the product is mass-produced. With the advancement of computer technology, computers have been introduced to the prototype's measuring process. An accuracy of measuring the prototype has been greatly improved. A measuring machine, such as a three-dimensional measuring machine or a coordinate measuring machine (CMM) controlled by a computer, has been used for measuring profile and dimensions of the prototype. During the measuring process, the prototype is placed on a measuring area of the CMM, the measuring machine includes a movable arm with a charge coupled device to collect images of the prototype. The collected images are used for measuring the profile and dimension of the prototype.
However, the movable arm conventionally used by the measuring machine can not move accurately along a designated path, thus causing time loss to have engineers to repeat the measuring process of the prototype, and further affecting an accuracy of the dimensions of the prototype has been reduced. Additionally, conventional measuring processes does not check a state of the measuring machine before the measuring machine begins to obtain the dimensions of the prototype, thus a safety environment of the measuring machine cannot be ensured while the measuring machine is operating.
What is needed, therefore, is a system and method for controlling operations of a measuring machine, which can accurately control the movable arm to move along a designated path, and check states of the measuring machine before the measuring machine begins to operate, so as to improve a precision when a measuring a product prototype and ensure a safety while the measuring machine is operating.